Pakistan Super League (PSL) had its first auction this season, with the most expensive player, Steve Smith, bagging PKR 140 million after being directly signed by Multan Sultans. In the auction, the most expensive player was Rawalpindiz’s Naseem Shah, who was bought for PKR 86.5 million. But how have these players fared for their teams this season?
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Steve Smith (Multan Sultans) – PKR 140 million:
Steve Smith played his debut PSL season and, going by his numbers, he had a decent time. The Australian batter scored 380 runs at an average of 34.54 with a 161.70 strike rate. He also scored a hundred against the eventual finalists Hyderabad Kingsmen. Interestingly, Smith bowled an over for Multan, his first since 2019, and grabbed a wicket.
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Saim Ayub (Hyderabad Kingsmen) – PKR 126 million:
Hyderabad Kingsmen bought Saim Ayub for the league’s most expensive deal among local players. The young batter had an underpar season, mimicking his last PSL season, where he represented Peshawar Zalmi. In 13 matches, Saim scored 258 runs at an average of a mere 21.50 and a pedestrian 119 strike rate. He scored each run for approximately PKR 488,372.
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Naseem Shah (Rawalpindiz) – PKR 86.5 million:
Naseem Shah’s PSL season was marred by injuries as he could play only three games for Rawalpindiz. Playing his second game of the competition, Naseem limped off the field with lower back pain, which ruled him out of the tournament until the later stages. He returned in Rawalpindiz’s twin city derby match against Islamabad United but picked up a knee injury once again that ended his tournament.
In total, he took two wickets in three games, with each of his wickets costing Rawalpindiz PKR 43,250,000.
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Faheem Ashraf (Islamabad United) – PKR 85 million:
Faheem Ashraf took nine wickets and scored 73 runs with a 119 strike rate in this PSL 11. This was his worst PSL season in terms of both batting average and strike rate. Being Islamabad United’s most expensive pick in the auction, Faheem immensely underperformed this edition.
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Daryl Mitchell (Rawalpindiz) – PKR 80.5 million:
Daryl Mitchell was the most expensive foreign player bought in the PSL auction. Rawalpindiz splurged PKR 80.5 million to win the bidding war against Lahore Qalandars, Peshawar Zalmi, Quetta Gladiators, and Islamabad United. In total, the New Zealand all-rounder scored 255 runs, the highest for Rawalpindiz, in nine innings with a 125 strike rate. He also grabbed four wickets, including a 3/32 against Karachi Kings.
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